Massachusetts and Rhode Island have jointly awarded 1.2GW of new offshore wind capacity to two projects.
Avangrid and Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners have got the nod for 800MW from their Vineyard Wind project from officials in Massachusetts.
The project was selected after a “stringent review” established the wind farm will provide “substantial ratepayer benefits”, according to the Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs.
Final acceptance of the bid and award of contract is conditional upon successful contract negotiations between the parties and the regulatory approval at the Massachusetts Department of Public Utilities.
Deepwater Wind meanwhile has entered into contract negotiations with the state of Rhode Island for the 400MW Revolution project.
The Governor’s office said the project “was selected through a competitive offshore wind procurement process in collaboration with Massachusetts”.
Rhode Island state agencies, including the Office of Energy Resources and the Division of Public Utilities and Carriers, independently evaluated the proposal.
Danish developer Orsted and local utility Eversource were unsuccessful with bids of 400MW and 800MW from their Bay State Wind site.
“We submitted what we considered a very competitive, but value-creating bid. While we are of course disappointed by the outcome of the solicitation, the US remains a key market to us,” said Orsted wind chief executive Martin Neubert.
Image: reNEWS
Vineyard, Revolution win 1.2GW
By EBS